If you filed a Joint Petition for Divorce in Massachusetts then you will participate in an uncontested divorce hearing and the Judge will then issue Findings of Fact the day of the hearing. A Judgment of Divorce Nisi will issue after thirty (30) days, and it will become Absolute after a further ninety (90) days. This means that if you file a Joint Petition for Divorce you are not legally and officially divorced until at least 120 days after the divorce hearing date.

If you filed a Complaint for Divorce then your case will end either with a trial (if you don't settle) or an uncontested divorce hearing (if you settle). If you reach an Agreement, then a Judgment of Divorce Nisi will issue and be effective as of the date of the uncontested divorce hearing, and it will become Absolute after a further ninety (90) days. This means that if you file a Complaint for Divorce you are not legally and officially divorced until at least 90 days after the divorce hearing date.

Since the statute (M.G.L. c. 208 s 21) simply calls for judgments to become final after the "expiration of ninety days", why would it take longer? Because the Court is not open on holidays and weekends, and this can affect the final effective date. In a Joint Petition this can also affect the date the Judgment actually issues as well, since it is thirty days after the hearing, and not the same day as the hearing as in a Complaint for Divorce.

To make sense of all this, it helps to view an example:

Assume that you file a Joint Petition for Divorce and your uncontested hearing date was on April Fools Day, Friday, April 1, 2011 (you may read into the choice of that date whatever you choose to).

Thirty days after April 1, 2011 was Sunday, May 1, 2011 (TIP: if you don't like counting on a calendar use Wolfram Alpha for quick date calculations). Since the court is not open on Sundays, the Judgment of Divorce Nisi in this case would have issued on Monday, May 2, 2011.

Now to calculate the Judgment of Divorce Absolute date, we would count 90 days after May 2, 2011, which results in Sunday, July 31, 2011. Again, the court isn't open on Sunday, so the date of Divorce Absolute shifts to Monday, August 1, 2011.

If you had simply added 120 days to April 1, 2011, you may have thought that your Divorce Absolute date was Saturday, July 30, 2011, when in fact the actual date was Monday, August 1, 2011. While you could still celebrate on the previous Saturday, the actual date does have a legal effect on certain issues (to read more on those issues read our previous post: What is the purpose of the Divorce Nisi waiting period?)

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

There are five questions you will need to answer to get started with a divorce in Massachusetts:
1. CAN you file for divorce in Massachusetts?2. WHY are you getting divorced?3. HOW will you get divorced?4. WHO can help you get divorced?5. WHERE will you get divorced?

We answer each of these questions below:

1. CAN you file for divorce in Massachusetts?

If you have been a resident of Massachusetts for one year then you can file for divorce in Massachusetts. Even if you have not been a resident for one year, you still may be able to file for divorce in Massachusetts but it may be complicated to determine.

These are called "fault" divorces because obtaining a divorce for any of these reasons requires that you first prove that one spouse has caused the divorce by doing one of the things listed, i.e. it is "their fault" that the marriage has broken down. It is unusual under the current state of Massachusetts law to file for "fault" divorces because they require this extra evidence of fault before a divorce can be granted.

If you are filing for a No-Fault Divorce (the most likely option) then you may not have to litigate your case. There are other (oftentimes better) options for:

3. HOW will you get divorced?

There are four paths you can take to get divorced: Direct Settlement Negotiation, Litigation, Mediation, or Collaborative Divorce. We created an infographic to help you visualize the different tracks you can take, and how you might end up moving from one track to the other (as well as some of the waypoints along the way): The Divorce Roller-Coaster: An Infographic of Options.

Each path has strengths and weaknesses and we examined some of these in the following posts:

Regardless of which of these paths you believe is best for your case, you will likely benefit from some help:

4. WHO can help you get divorced?

An attorney can help you with all of the steps in the divorce process. An experienced Massachusetts divorce attorney can answer or help you answer all of the questions raised at the beginning of your case (as covered in this post); help guide you through the process that you choose; assist you in drafting necessary documents, negotiating and presenting your case; and prepare and explain any settlements in your case. You can hire an attorney to help you with all of these elements of your case, or just parts of your case (through Limited Assistance Representation).

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

There are four tracks you can choose from to get divorced in Massachusetts: Direct Settlement Negotiation, Litigation, Mediation, or Collaborative Divorce. We created the following infographic to help you visualize the different tracks you can choose from, and how you might end up moving from one track to the other (as well as some of the important waypoints along the way):

You may reprint or distribute this Infographic on your website so long as the copyright and contact information for Kelsey & Trask, P.C. remains attached to the bottom of the image.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The following chart displays the paths for determining whether you qualify to file a divorce in Massachusetts. Our hope is that this infographic can help clarify the confusing question of jurisdiction over a divorce case in Massachusetts by consolidating the statutes and case law into one chart.

As we discussed in a previous post, just because you can file for divorce does not necessarily mean the court has jurisdiction over all issues in your case. If your case involves residency, property, or children living in multiple states, you should definitely consult with an attorney.

You may reprint or distribute this Infographic on your website so long as the copyright and contact information for Kelsey & Trask, P.C. remains attached to the bottom of the image.

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